pontifex

Meaning

1. (declension-3, masculine) an ancient Roman high priest, state minister, pontiff
2. (declension-3, masculine) a pontiff or bishop of the early Christian church, now specifically the Pope

Concepts

high priest

bishop

Synonyms

antistes

Translations

sommo sacerdote

γεφυροποιός

évêque

pontife

grand prêtre

vescovo

hogepriester

bispo

sumo sacerdote

obispo

Hohepriester

sumo sacerdote

επίσκοπος

Pronounced as (IPA)

[ˈpɔn.tɪ.fɛks]

Etymology

Often interpreted as a compound originally meaning “bridge-maker”, from Proto-Italic *pontifaks, equivalent to pōns m (“bridge”) + -fex (suffix representing a maker or producer), either metaphorically “one who negotiates between gods and men” or literally if at some point the social class which supplied the priests was more or less identical with engineers that were responsible for building bridges. Compare Sanskrit पथिकृत् (pathikṛ́t, “path-maker”), attested as an epithet of rishis in the Rig Veda.